"Talent could give you nothing. Without work, talent is only talent, promise, not product. I wanted to learn how to go from being the accident at the beginning to a writer, and I learned that from her."

As someone who told myself for years how naturally great I was at writing, only to discover that it didn't really matter because I was naturally awful at some other aspects of being a writer, this line spoke to me. And it's embarrassing to admit that I had that inflated vision on myself, but I feel okay admitting it because I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one. ;)

"Getting your pages back from her was like getting to the dance floor and seeing your favorite black shirt under the nightclub’s blacklight, all the hair and dust that was always there but invisible to you, now visible."

"Lorrie Moore calls the feeling I felt that day “the consolations of the mask,” where you make a place that doesn’t exist in your own life for the life your life has no room for, the exiles of your memory."

So many quotable lines from this essay. I've bookmarked it for the subtle kicks in the ass I seem to need at least fortnightly.

That was a wonderful essay, Moonie. Inspiring, for sure. And I always go to that place on the bookshelf. Now I'll put my finger in there.

But what do you do when they just don't seem to want literary fiction these days? What do you do when your last four reject letters say that you're talented and that they "admire" your work? Is this a new trend? Using the word "admire"?

I agree. I've read the article twice already, printed it out and highlighted. I love everyone's favorite lines, but I'm also weirdly excited no one has already chosen my very favorite:

"You could think that your voice as a writer would just emerge naturally, all on its own, with no help whatsoever, but you'd be wrong. What I saw on the page was that the voice is in fact trapped, nervous, lazy. Even, and in my case, most especially, amnesiac. And that it had to be cut free."

Friday, when I discovered this article thanks to Twitter, I added a link to it on my blog. I don't know why I didn't do a post on it. Good thinking, moonrat!

Thanks for the link. All of the essay was so memorable, but my favorite:Talent isn’t enough, she had told us. Writing is work. Anyone can do this, anyone can learn to do this. It’s not rocket science, it’s habits of mind and habits of work.Good to hear, because I CAN work.

Love! So, so much! My favorite:"Go up to the place in the bookstore where your books will go, she said. Walk right up and find your place on the shelf. Put your finger there, and then go every time."Thanks for the inspiration. I will try to get in one good hour today... just for you. :)

Talent isn’t enough, she had told us. Writing is work. Anyone can do this, anyone can learn to do this. It’s not rocket science, it’s habits of mind and habits of work. I started with people much more talented than me, she said, and they’re dead or in jail or not writing. The difference between myself and them is that I’m writing.

The whole damn thing is quotable. Thanks, moonie, I needed that today.

And now, because of the picture looking like Morrissey... I'll have this damn song running through my head all day...

We hate it when our friends become successful... and if they're northern... that makes it even worse and... if we can destroy them.....

Come on, you know you're singing it now too... with the British accent...

Moony, thank you for sharing this. I was feeling a little iffy about writing tonight and now I'm going to start with an hour and go from there.

My favorite graph: "...avoid emotional language. The line goes grey when you do that, she said. Don’t tell the reader that someone was happy or sad. When you do that, the reader has nothing to see. She isn’t angry, Annie said. She throws his clothes out the window. Be specific."

"Talent isn’t enough, she had told us. Writing is work. Anyone can do this, anyone can learn to do this. It’s not rocket science, it’s habits of mind and habits of work. I started with people much more talented than me, she said, and they’re dead or in jail or not writing. The difference between myself and them is that I’m writing."

"Talent could give you nothing. Without work, talent is only talent, promise, not product. I wanted to learn how to go from being the accident at the beginning to a writer, and I learned that from her."

This was simply an awesome essay. And I needed that quote. I want to print it out and put it up on my wall.

I started with people much more talented than me, she said, and they’re dead or in jail or not writing. The difference between myself and them is that I’m writing.

I often feel the same: that I went to school with so many gifted writers and that I'm not worthy to be writing. Yet I am writing while they are not. On a bad day, just getting words on the page is a struggle, a victory.

"You are the only one of you, she said of it. Your unique perspective, at this time, in our age, whether it’s on Tunis or the trees outside your window, is what matters. Don’t worry about being original, she said dismissively."

"If you’re doing your job, the reader feels what you felt. You don’t have to tell the reader how to feel. No one likes to be told how to feel about something. And if you doubt that, just go ahead. Try and tell someone how to feel."

So many solid pieces of writing advice, tender details, and I loved the bookstore anecdote at the end, but here is the part that made me nod and smile:

"If I’ve done my job, she said in the last class, you won’t be happy with anything you write for the next 10 years. It’s not because you won’t be writing well, but because I’ve raised your standards for yourself."

Thanks for sharing this with us. It's a keeper that I plan to read again and recommend to others. (Need I say I'm also envious of anyone who gets such a great teacher -- and has the wisdom to realize it. I usually don't wish to be 20 years old again, but this essay put me there for a moment...)

This article really resonated with me. It's odd, because most of the info in the article I had already heard or read about along the way. Everyone has heard of "show don't tell" and "minimize adverbs." However, the way it was presented gave me a much deeper apprecation and understanding of those concepts. So much so, that I actually had several 'aha' moments as things finally took root in my mind.

I'm so gratified to see the response to Alex Chee's remarkable essay on Annie Dillard. I'm the editor of the anthology in which the essay appears - and was written for. The essay is one of 30 on the subject of mentors, muses & what I call monsters. The book is about to be for sale, and though I know I'm biased, the essays are ALL pretty incredible. The early reviews of the book are phenomenal. Please visit the book blog for more info- and THANK YOU for reading and writing! www.mentorsmusesmonsters.blogspot.com-- EB